Page 30 of Marked Resistance

The orange glow of the flames in the room began to color my vision. I pointed a sharp finger at Grim’s chest. “It’syourfault my sister is even in this mess.”

Grim studied me and then spoke in a low tone. “I’m a vampire. It’s what wedo. I’m not confused about my role here, but I am starting to get very confused about yours.”

“As am I,” Ilanis added.

Xavier exploded. “Enough! We’ve already lost a lot of time. How much do we have left?”

“Just over thirty hours or so,” Ilanis answered.

“Then we’d better split up. We no longer have the luxury of taking our time. We need to cover more ground. Ilanis, you, and Grim check the dock and the coastline. Zee and I will stay here and search the town. Remember, she’s a youngling, so she’ll be fast.”

“She’ll be easy pickings,” Grim said with a sneer. “She didn’t report to Dobgar. She’s untrained.”

“I wouldn’t be so confident,Grim,” I hissed. “You’ve already had your ass kicked once tonight by a youngling. It’s not much of a stretch to think it could happen again.”

“Trust me, Sweetheart. I held back. For the sake of the team.”

“And if you don’t do your job? I’ll do mine,” Ilanis fired. “You’ve already hadyourass kicked, remember? You were laid up for a couple of weeks. Next time I draw my blade on you, I won’t miss. I’ll lay you low. And Xavier?”

Xavier flexed the powerful muscles in his back. “Will you be drawing your blade on me as well, Ilanis?”

Her eyes dropped to the floor. “Just make sure your allegiance is where it’s supposed to be.”

“Hmm,” Xavier hummed. “We’re running out of time. The sun will be up soon. It’s best you two get going.”

When the door shut behind them, as Ilanis and Grim left, I slid up beside Xavier. A room so full only moments before held only the two of us and the fire Xavier studied. I focused my gaze on it as well as I spoke.

“We can’t kill my sister, Xavier. Please.”

Both our arms hung loosely by our sides. Xavier’s fingertips brushed mine, and the flames no longer existed in the hearth but were now housed in my body.

“I know,” he responded. “That’s why we have to find her first.”

Chapter Thirteen

We stepped outside and into the night air. The chill I experienced didn’t come from the air but from the thoughts of what would happen to Sarah if we didn’t get to her first.

“We’re running out of time, Zenobia,” Xavier reminded me. “Sunrise is in a couple of hours and we’ll need to find shelter. If we don’t find her by then, we’ll lose another twelve hours.”

My stomach churned. “I know.”

“She’s your sister. You know her better than anyone, even Command, and their infinite intelligence.” There was a hint of sarcasm in his voice as he spoke about Command. “Where do we start first?”

“I don’t know,” I said and rubbed the back of my neck with my right palm. “I can’t think.”

Xavier placed a hand on my shoulder and gave it a gentle, yet firm squeeze. “You have to learn to remain in control.”

“What are you talking about? I am in control!”

The look on his face.

“You’re a Wildfire, Zenobia,” he sighed. Then he reached out and took my hand, interlocking our fingers together. The strength in his hand made me tingle. “As the flames of the fire flicker and dance, rise and fall,” he explained, moving our hands together in unison, “so does the power inside you. It can cause you to flicker bright and dominate your surroundings, or burn out. You must learn to steel yourself like the blue flame. They are the hottest. They are the purest. And when the supply is steady, nothing can put it out. If you ever want to become the blue flame, you must learn to keep steady.

“Calm yourself. Dwelling on the worst-case scenario is not going to do anything but convince you it’s theonlyscenario. Now, think. Your sister is alone, frightened. She’s recently turned into the thing you tried to protect her from with no one to guide her.”

“Have you reached the blue flame?”

“There’s only been a handful of Wildfires who have reached that level. You have the potential to not only reach the blue flame but become the brightest ever. But for now? We need to focus on your sister.”

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